Our Day in Numbers

• 2 flights
• 4 plane taxis to the runway
• 2 return trips to the Port au Prince airport
• 1 sick woman
• 1 missed flight
• 10 margaritas to celebrate Cinco de Mayo
• 3 airports
• 4 security checkpoints
• 2 baggage claims
• 10 weary travelers
• and much, much more!

Our day started as usual with breakfast provided by Margaret and hugs and kisses from the neighborhood kids as they came for their breakfast. After loading the truck with 85% fewer bags than when we arrived, we were off to visit the Food for the Poor facility. There we were given a tour of the building as well as a "verbal tour" of the remarkable work this organization is doing. We were able to see the offices, the warehouse, the kitchen and the clinic. In the kitchen, workers were preparing the day's meal for the 3,000 families they serve daily. That's right - they serve 3,000 families each day! One representative from each family comes to the Food for the Poor kitchen and receives the food for their family. Michelle and Jim spent a few minutes serving the rice and pork sauce that were the day's offerings.

We then enjoyed one last hair-raising truck ride through the streets of Port au Prince on our way to the airport. We navigated the airport with ease and got through the 3 security checkpoints with no problems. Members of the group enjoyed having some time to do last minute shopping, especially in the duty-free shops! We boarded the plane on time and got settled. Then the adventure began...

After we taxied to the runway, the captain announced that animals and hazardous material had been loaded into the same cargo bay. Apparently this is against regulations. So we made the trip back to the airport, the items were separated and we should have been off. But, we had burned about 2,000 pounds of fuel during our little excursion to and from the runway so we had to refuel. We twiddled our thumbs as the temperature in the plane rose higher and higher and the air became stuffier and stuffier. And then we were off... or so we thought. We made yet another trip to the runway, only to be told that "when it rains, it pours." A woman on the plane was sick and needed to be seen by the medics. This did not sit well with many passengers who were sternly shushed by flight attendants! We returned to the airport where the medics escorted the woman off the plane. A riot almost occurred when we were told that the woman did have checked bags and it would take about 20 minutes to find and remove them from the plane. By this point, the flight attendants were scurrying up and down the aisles bringing water to passengers who were getting overheated. The woman next to Paul was very confused as to her temperature. She was sitting covered in a blanket, fanning herself, and asking for water because she was hot. Hmmmm...

Anyway, after the sick woman and the bags were removed, we were finally off to Miami! By this time, we were leaving almost 2 hours behind schedule and really had no hope of making our connecting flight. And we didn't. We made it through customs with no problem, Greer regained possession of all his items, and we were re-booked on a later flight to DCA. So what is a group of weary travelers to do with their 1 hour wait? Celebrate Cinco de Mayo in style of course! Mmmm... good margaritas!

Luckily, our flight from Miami to DC had no problems and we arrived in DC safely at around 10 p.m. After retrieving our bags and saying good-bye, we were off to be reunited with our family and friends.

Thank you to all for your prayers while we were away. I'm sure my teammates would agree that this was an amazing trip. We look forward to sharing our experiences with you on May 31!

More pictures will be uploaded soon!